Text 1790, 112 rader
Skriven 2013-06-26 15:36:00 av MICHAEL LOO (1:123/140)
     Kommentar till en text av NANCY BACKUS
Ärende: cross cultural 771
==========================
 ML> Makes me wonder what the secret touches were.
 NB> It might have been as simple as seasonings, or in the case of the
 NB> pizza, using the oil at hand instead of olive or whatever...

I've got a thought for you. Do you think they use real
olive oil at Anastasios's Pizza and Fetid Cheese Market?

 In the
 NB> case of their jello, they obviously were using real fruit juice in
 NB> theirs... and in the case of their Chinese donuts, they managed to make
 NB> them light and heavenly... (and neither jello nor donuts are usually
 NB> anywhere on my favorites list)...

Interesting and in the case of the gelatin dessert atypical.
At least one can justify the doughnuts by figuring there's this
big kettle of oil anyway, might as well make doughnuts, which
are cheap and wonderful made fresh and crummy and ugly made in
a factory.

 Cook had a deft hand, kept the
 NB> frying oil at the right temp... and generally was just very good at
 NB> what he was doing.  Haven't run into food quite that good since, so
 NB> haven't a clue if he's still in the area...

Ah. Cook is all. A pity you haven't kept track of him.

There used to be a really good Cajun place in Marblehead, MA,
but one day I went back and every dish was about the same -
almost unprocessed canned tomatoes on admittedly okay shrimp and
sausage, big dice of raw scallions on top. Turns out that Ed the
cook, who must have been the Cajun equivalent of Hunanese, had
wandered off and gotten himself in trouble and was in jail. I
went back a couple times, as it was convenient to the homes of
some friends of mine, and it was mediocre at best (how can you
mess up fried seafood?). Then the word went around that Ed was
back, and of course the food was good again, and, as before,
suddenly it wasn't any more - Ed was in jail again. And as it
was some kind of repeat offense, the restaurant limped along for
a while and finally closed. It's been 20 years, and I bet Ed is
back out on the streets, and somewhere in eastern Massachusetts,
where you least expect one, there's a great Cajun place.


 NB>> It's an ok spice, especially in the right place, but not one I'd want
 NB>> in quantity anywhere, either...
 ML> It was originally a crab boil, I think, with strong flavors
 ML> meant to stick to the shell and be transferred only incidentally
 ML> to the meat; now it's a main ingredient used to ruin crab cakes
 ML> and broiled fish and meats.
 NB> Now that makes some sense to me... as a crab boil...  for the others,
 NB> a light hand suffices, if used at all...

Why they made the stuff for the purpose of obscuring the
taste of the finest, most delicate seafood in the world
I just can't fathom.

==

 NB>> can say you've tried them and found them excessively wanting...  :)
 ML> Yep. The So Delicious was especially disappointing because
 ML> the brand's ice noncreams are pretty good.
 NB> Apparently yogurt cultures don't take well to dairy substitutes...?

I wondered. There is a reason why the cultures are usually
in the Lactobacillus camp. I was curious once and found out
that some of these have adapted to be able to eat other kinds
of sugars than lactose, but by and large it seems that they
just sort of sit there suspended, which makes me wonder if
they do any good at all.

(Dom's) Mamma's Marinara Sauce
categories: celebrity, Italian, sauce, ingredient
yield: 2 qt

4 Tb olive oil
5 garlic cloves, minced
2 cn (28 oz each) ready-cut peeled tomatoes
- or 5 lb fresh tomatoes, peeled and sliced
6 oz tomato paste
4 Tb sun-dried tomatoes, chopped (optional)
h - if serving sauce on pasta
10 fresh basil leaves
pepper
grated cheese

In a deep 10" frying pan, heat the olive oil and
gently saute the garlic. Add tomatoes, tomato
paste and sun-dried tomatoes, if you are using these.
Put on medium heat for 20 to 30 min, stirring
occasionally.

For serving on pasta: Tear basil leaves into small
pieces and sprinkle on top after adding to pasta.
Add pepper and grated cheese to taste.

This sauce is fabulous with fish, scallops, shrimp,
or broiled chicken, etc.

Alternative: Add 1 md onion, finely chopped and saute
with the garlic until limp. [M endorses this variation]

Note: If fresh tomatoes are used, put them in a pot
of boiling water for about 10 sec until the skin can
be easily peeled off. Discard skin. Cut tomatoes into
pieces and add to frying-pan mixture. Add the tomato
paste and sun-dried tomatoes.

Source: Dom DeLuise, Eat This It Will Make You Feel Better

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